Landscaping materials, such as wood chips and wood mulch, are currently available in their natural colors, and in some cases, are available colored in various colors, for example, in black, brown, red, orange and various shades thereof. The materials are generally colored at a large facility, which may be the facility that manufactures the materials or a facility that post-treats the material. The coloring can be done in batch form, by adding pigment and the material to large vats or mixers; alternately, the coloring can be done in a continuous manner, using a conveyor belt or auger system. The colored material is packaged and shipped to the eventual consumer.
Colored wood chips and wood mulch are applied to the desired area in a layer usually about 2 to 6 inches thick. Upon exposure to the elements (e.g., sunlight, rain, snow, etc.) and over time the color fades. The common solution to refreshen the area is to merely replace the weathered material with new material, or to add new material to cover up the old.
Although the cost of all landscaping materials is increasing, the cost of wood chips and mulch is increasing at a greater pace, due to the downturn in the construction industry. Wood chips and mulch for landscaping are typically the by-product from wood processing. As the amount of lumber produced decreases, so does the availability of wood by-product, either from the mills or the areas where it is harvested.
In an attempt to reduce the amount of new wood chips and mulch needed to refreshen landscaping, some have attempted to reapply color to the installed wood material. This in situ refreshing has been done, for example, by spraying the installed material with a liquid pigment from a hand-held sprayer. Although this process is superficially acceptable, in that it colors the exposed material, improvements can be made.